Wednesday, 15 June 2016

How
could 'any' Beatles album be classed as 'overlooked' - especially in Britain?

When
the UK saw the release of "Magical Mystery Tour" on 8 December 1967 -
it was a 7" single book-pack - a double 2 x 45 'EP' on Parlophone MMT 1
(Mono) and SMMT 1 (Stereo) with only 6-songs - all culled from the movie of the
same name.

Our
American pals had it different and a couple of weeks earlier too. Theirs was
the full 11-track album on Capitol MAL 2835 (Mono) and Capitol SMAL 2835
(Stereo). Released 27 November 1967 – the US LP used the 6-songs of the British
double-EP as Side 1 and added five sides of three UK 45s The Beatles issued in
1967 as Side 2.

In
short – the Yanks have always had the album. But in Blighty - and I genuinely
have to double-take on this factoid whenever I see it - "Magical Mystery
Tour" the LP (as we know it) wasn't officially released by EMI until the
19th of November 1976! There were original 1967 US import copies on Capitol
Records of both LP variants brought into UK shops - but they weren't that
common. So as far as most British fans were concerned - "Magical Mystery
Tour" was 'that ditty' The Beatles did at the end of a very productive
year (June's "Sgt. Peppers..." was just ending a long number 1 LP run
when the "...Tour..." Double EP was released in December). The
"Magical Mystery Tour" album in their native land has always seemed
like some kind of afterthought - a sort of 'best of 1967 tracks' compilation
given a more cohesive name.

Which
brings us to the album and the music. By adding on those five tracks onto Side
2 - the Americans turned a good UK 45-release into an LP-platter of friggin'
genius. In fact you could argue that you simply take a look at the track list
for this LP - and the review is already done. "Hello Goodbye",
"Strawberry Fields Forever", "Penny Lane", "All You Need
Is Love", "The Fool On The Hill" and "I Am The Walrus"
- all on one album! And of course there's those other nuggets like the trippy
instrumental "Flying" (too many magic mushrooms boys) and equally
groovy spiralling of "Blue Jay Way" (other substances on top of the
mushrooms) and Paul's poppy "Your Mother Should Know" - a song that
wouldn't have gone amiss on "Peppers".

This
Japanese variant of "Magical Mystery Tour" cost me - but is so
beautiful that it deserves uber-praise. Here are the Semolina Pilchards
climbing up the Eiffel Tower...

Released
17 December 2014 (reissued 15 April 2015) and using the 2009 Remaster done at
Abbey Road Studios - this Japan-only SHM-CD of "Magical Mystery Tour"
by THE BEATLES on Universal/Apple UICY-76974 (Barcode 4988005867513) is a
straightforward transfer of the 14-Track STEREO album. It’s presented in a
limited edition 5” Mini LP Repro Artwork and will be deleted in June 2016
(total playing time 36:32 minutes).

Side
1:

1.
Magical Mystery Tour

2.
The Fool On The Hill

3.
Flying

4.
Blue Jay Way

5.
Your Mother Should Know

6.
I Am The Walrus

Side
2:

7.
Hello Goodbye

8.
Strawberry Fields Forever

9.
Penny Lane

10.
Baby You’re A Rich Man

11.
All You Need Is Love

Using
the 09/09/09 STEREO MIX of the album – this Japanese SHM-CD reissue also
decides to keep it simple and loses the enhanced CD track called "Magical
Mystery Tour Mini Documentary" that came with the 09/09/09 releases
(wasn’t up to much anyway). The Super High Materials CD (SHM-CD) does not
require special audio equipment – it will play on all devices and Toshiba claim
that it offers a better form of disc with increased retrieval details. As
someone who owns about 20 of them - I've found that claim to be true. The audio
on this sucker through my Marantz CD/AMP combo (paired up with Tannoy Mercury
V4 speakers) is just beautiful. The accumulative effect is to have even the
most jaundiced ear sit up and take notice. Then there's the sexy artwork...

The
chunky EMI 36-page colour booklet returns as a separate entity - but there's
also the usual 22-white-page Japanese booklet too that features some unreadable
Japanese liner notes followed by the lyrics in English and a back page that
pictures all 16 titles in this SHM-CD Reissue series. The attention to detail
on the actual 1967 album-sleeve is delicious. You get a hard card repro of the
USA STEREO LP artwork (Capitol SMAL 2385) complete with its hard-card gatefold
sleeve with attached booklet. The label reflects the rainbow coloured variant
of the American Capitol Records original LP – even aping the paste-on effect of
the front and inner artwork. There’s a white inner bag, a protective plastic
for the SHM-CD within that and an OBI strip around the edge of the sleeve –
mine being Blue in colour for the 'Encore' reissue series of 2015 (see list
below). Holding it all together is a resealable plastic that is prone to
tearing – so be careful removing the goodies.

The
Audio Quality on the 09/09/09 CD Remaster was and is magnificent. Both GUY
MASSEY and STEVE ROOKE remastered the first generation stereo master tapes and
to say they've done a good job is like saying the Great Wall of China is an ok
building-project. Their work here is fabulous – monumental almost - it really
is. The sound quality is glorious throughout - clear, warm, detailed - every
single track a revelation.

"...See
how they snide..." - John sings on the wonderfully potty and acidic
"I Am The Walrus" and follows it with words about Expert Textperts
and Elementary Penguins singing Hare Krishna. Paul warbles about The Fool on A
Hill, The Man With A Thousand Voices and people on a bus being strange kinds of
Egg Men...

How
can you overlook and not own “Magical Mystery Tour”! Barking Nuts has never
looked nor sounded so damn good as it does on this wonderful Japanese SHM-CD
reissue. Seek it out and prepare to fork out for the rest of the series...

PS: For info purposes:

There are 16 STEREO titles in THE BEATLES Japanese SHM-CD
Reissue Series.

The first wave came in December 2014 and then a repress in
April 2015. Purchasers should note that 'both' issues have the same catalogue
numbers and barcodes. The way to recognise the difference is the sticker colour
on the front plastic. 1st Issues come with Red Stickers and were released 17
December 2014 - 2nd 'Encore' Reissues come with Blue Stickers and were released
15 April 2015. I’ve provided Barcodes but to locate the right pressing CD on
Amazon - but you will need to check with your seller first to see which
pressing you're getting (most sellers will identify as either 1st or Encore so
there’s no confusion).

SOME OF MY E-BOOKS FOR SALE on AMAZON

About Me

To date I've over 3500 posts/reviews and 80+ Listmania Lists on Amazon UK - most are for quality music CD REMASTERS and FILMS on BLU RAY.

I'm a Top 15 Reviewer on Amazon UK and have been a 'Hall Of Fame' Reviewer for some years now...

They feature recommendations from years of trawling through digipaks and flicks. I tend to highlight reissues and remasters that have slipped through the net and movies on DVD and BLU RAY that deserve your attention/reappraisal.

My music reviews are in-depth - focusing on decent remasters - interesting imports - rarities - info that helps a purchase decision etc. And I often provide a Discography for Box Sets and multiples and detailed track lists for reissues.

Loved the awesome re-issues of Steve McQueen by PREFAB SPROUT and Strangers Almanac by WHISKEYTOWN [with Ryan Adams]. The three definitive Bear Family Series - Street Corner Symphonies (1934 to 1958 Vocal Groups), Blowing The Fuse (1945 to 1960 R'n'B - most reviewed) and Sweet Soul Music (1961 to 1975 - all 15 reviewed).

Check out the beautiful Scottish Folk of Black Water by KRIS DREVER (2006) and the Sahara rocking beat of TINARIWEN'S Aman Iman - Water Is Life. 2011 saw Jethro Tull's Aqualung receive a stunning makeover by Steve Wilson of Porcupine Tree and 2012 has Just As I Am by Bill Withers be given a top remaster by Big Break Records of the UK. Loving the 2013 Japanese SHM-CD reissues of J.J. Cale and the 2012 to 2015 Japan-Only Atlantic 1000: Best R&B Collection (see Joe Turner reviews). Small Faces Here Come The Nice and The Blue Nile's Hats & Peace At Last Deluxe Editions for 2014. Digging Edsel's 4CD Box Sets For The Beat and The Sound - superb. Edsel's Wilson Pickett and Percy Sledge CD Reissues from late 2016 are also superb.

Films - The Help, Lincoln, The Bands Visit, Man On A Ledge, The Grey, Mr. Nobody, Third Star, Caramel, Easy-A, Crash, United 93, The Insider, Death To Smoochy, Babel, Kinsey, Bright Star, Stranger Than Fiction, Imagine Me & You, The Namesake, After The Wedding, Seraphim Falls, Michael Clayton, Frankie Go Boom, Infamous, Gran Torino, The Blind Side, Invictus, Crazy Heart, Ondine, Amelie, Four Lions, Young Victoria, Untouchable, Jo Nesbo's Headhunters and The Secret In Their Eyes are what's most impressed in the last while. The Shawshank Redemption is for me the greatest film ever made, Cinema Paradiso the most beautiful and Nil By Mouth the most powerful.

I've also raved about gorgeous new restorations of The Italian Job, Goldfinger, African Queen, Back To The Future, O Brother Where Art Thou?, North By Northwest, To Catch A Thief, To Kill A Mockingbird and The Sting on Blu Ray - can't recommend these enough.

I'm Irish (originally from Dublin) and married with 3 grown-up kids - one of which has autism (The Beautiful Dean).

I was a vinyl rarities buyer and put-upon expert in Reckless Records (Soho, London) for over 20 years and have contributed to many of the Record Collector Rare Record Price Guides.

Currently freelance writer/reviewer. Have written four screenplays - "The Cloths Of Heaven", "Silas", "An English Lady - The Eglantyne Jebb Story" and "Full Of Grace" which I'll discuss with Film Industry Insiders.